Carrying Case

ABSTRACT

A carrying case is disclosed that includes a body having a first portion moveably attached to a second portion such that the first and second portions are moveable from a closed position to an open position. The first portion has an exterior surface and an interior surface The interior surface of the first portion defines a cavity The second portion has an exterior surface and an interior surfice. The interior surface of the second portion defines a cavity. The first portion and the second portion are configured such that at least one object is positionable within at least one of the cavity of the first portion and the cavity of the second portion when the body is positioned in the open position.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) ofpending U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/025,814 that wasfiled on Feb. 4, 2008. The entirety of U.S. Provisional Application Ser.No. 61/025,814 is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to carrying cases configured to releasablyretain components to shoes, other footwear and other objects.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Active footwear with a wheel in the heel has been in the market placefor a number of years. One version of such footwear is a footwearproduct sold under the Heelys trade name. Such footwear includes a shoethat has soles configured to have wheels inserted into the soles so theuser may have roller shoes that permit the shoes to act similarly toroller blades or roller skates. The soles of such shoes are alsoconfigured such that these wheel inserts may be replaced with pluginserts such that the soles are generally flat so a user may walk in theshoes when the plug inserts are attached to the soles.

Many places, such as schools and stores, do not allow roller type shoesto be used indoors. Often, users such as small children must storedifferent inserts into backpacks or other carrying cases so they canadjust their shoes from wheeled shoes to flat soled shoes by replacingwheel inserts with plug inserts. In such carrying cases, the footwearcomponents, such as the plug inserts or wheel inserts, may become lostin a compartment of the carrying case or be difficult to find.

There is a need for a carrying case for footwear components or otherobjects that permit a user to securely hold the objects such that theobjects are easy to find and use when needed. Such a carrying casepreferably permits a user to easily find the objects and provide anaesthetic effect that is considered desirable to the user. Preferably,the carrying case is sized and configured to be an accessory item thatmay be releasably attached to backpacks or other bags or carrying casestypically used by children to carry books or other school related items.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

A carrying case is provided that includes a body that has a firstportion moveably attached to a second portion such that the first andsecond portions are moveable from a closed position to an open position.The first and second portions each have an exterior surface and aninterior surface. The interior surface of each of the first and secondportions defines a cavity. The first and second portions are configuredsuch that a user may place one or more objects within the cavity formedin the first portion, the cavity formed in the second portion or eachcavity. The first portion of the body has a plurality of sidewalls thatextend from the interior surface of the first portion. The plurality ofsidewalls defines at least one receptacle sized and configured toreceive an object with at least one projection. Each of the sidewallsare comprised of at least one holding mechanism that is comprised of aresilient retaining member attached to the sidewall between a firstopening formed in the sidewall and a second opening formed in thesidewall.

Embodiments of our carrying case may have each retaining memberconfigured to move to receive the at least one projection of the objectin the first opening or the second opening and move against the insertedone or more projections to hold the one or more projections after theone or more projections are inserted into the first or second opening.The objects may include wheel inserts, plug-inserts, other footwearaccessories or other objects.

In some embodiments of our carrying case, each sidewall can have a firstportion that defines a side of the first opening opposite the resilientmember and a second portion that defines a side of the second openingopposite the resilient member. The resilient member may be more flexiblethan at least one of the first portion of the sidewall and the secondportion of the sidewall. The flexibility of the resilient member may bedue to the resilient member having less mass than the first or secondportion of the sidewall. Alternatively, the resilient member may have adifferent composition than the first or second portions of the sidewallthat provide the greater flexibility.

Some embodiments of our carrying case may include a tool holdingmechanism attached to the interior surface of the second portion of thebody. The tool holding mechanism can include a magnet attached to one ormore walls that extend from the interior surface of the second portion.The magnet may be encased by the one or more walls.

It should be appreciated that a clip may be attached to the firstportion of the body or the second portion of the body that is configuredto permit the body to be releasably attached to pants, belts, backpacks,purses, or other bags, binders, or clothing. The first portion of thebody may have a slot sized to receive a portion of the clip, such as aprojections. A tightening mechanism configured to rotate about theprojection may also be included such that the clip is adjustable alongthe slot. For instance, the tightening mechanism may include a nut.

Embodiments of our carrying case may also include a protrusion thatextends from the exterior surface of the first portion or the secondportion of the body. The protrusion may be sized and configured todefine an opening between the protrusion and the body that is sized andconfigured to receive a fastening device, such as a clip or carabineer.

Preferably the body of the carrying case is composed of an elastomericmaterial.

We also provide a carrying case that may include a body that has a firstportion and as second portion that are moveably attached to each othersuch that the first and second portions may be moved from an openposition to a closed position. The second portion of the body mayinclude a holding mechanism having at least one wall that extends fromthe inner surface of the second portion. The one or more wallsencapsulate a magnet sized and configured to releasably retain an objectin the cavity of the second portion.

Other details, objects, and advantages of the invention will becomeapparent as the following description of certain present preferredembodiments thereof proceeds.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Present preferred embodiments of the carrying case are shown in theaccompanying drawings and certain present preferred methods ofpracticing the same are also illustrated therein, in which:

FIG. 1 is a top perspective view of a first present preferred embodimentof our carrying case with the body in an open position.

FIG. 2 is a bottom perspective view of the first present preferredembodiment of our carrying case with the body in an open position.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of the first present preferred embodimentin a closed position.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 2 illustrating a firstpresent preferred tool and first present preferred plug insert retainedwithin portions of the first present preferred embodiment of ourcarrying case.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view similar to FIG. 4 illustrating firstpresent preferred plug being inserted within a portion of the firstpresent preferred embodiment of our carrying case.

FIG. 6 is a is a perspective view similar to FIGS. 4 and 5 illustratingthe first present preferred tool being inserted within a portion of thefirst present preferred embodiment of our carrying case.

FIG. 7 is a perspective view similar to FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 illustrating afirst present preferred wheel inserted within a portion of the firstpresent preferred embodiment of our carrying case.

FIG. 8 is a bottom perspective view of a second present preferredembodiment of our carrying case with the body in an open position.

FIG. 9 is a top perspective view of the second present preferredembodiment of our carrying case with the body in an open position.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the second present preferred embodimentof our carrying case in a closed position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PRESENT PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

A first present preferred embodiment of our carrying case 1 isillustrated in FIGS. 1 through 7. The carrying case 1 includes body thathas a first portion 2 attached to a second portion 4 by hinges 7. Thecarrying case 1 is moveable from an open position to a closed position.When the carrying case 1 is in the open position, objects may bepositioned within the first portion 2 or second portion 4 of thecarrying case 1. The carrying case 1 may be kept in a closed position bya locking mechanism or other interlocking device such as a clip 9attached to the second portion 4 that has a protrusion 11 configured toreleasably attach to a hole (not shown) formed in the first portion 2 tokeep the carrying case 1 in the closed position.

A protrusion 6 extends from the exterior surface of the first portion.The protrusion 6 defines an opening 5 sized to receive a clip,carabineer or other fastening device that can attach the carrying caseto a backpack, belt, pant buckle, binder, or other article of clothing,luggage, bag, backpack or carrying device.

The first portion 2 and second portion 4 each includes an exteriorsurface and an interior surface. The interior surface of the firstportion 2 defines a cavity 10 and the interior surface of the secondportion 4 defines a cavity 8. It should be appreciated that the interiorsurfaces are exposed when the carrying case 1 is in the open positionsuch that a user may access objects held within the carry case 1.

The first portion 2 of the carrying case 1 includes multiple retainingwalls 12, 13 and 14. The retaining walls define receptacles for one ormore objects, such as wheel inserts or plug inserts for shoes or otherobjects. Preferably, the receptacles defined by the retaining walls aresized and configured to hold and releasably retain footwear inserts suchas wheel inserts or plug inserts for shoes or skates sold under theHeelys trade name.

Each retaining wall has at least one holding mechanism 20. Each holdingmechanism 20 includes a resilient member 15 positioned between a firstopening 16 and a second opening 17 formed in a retaining wall.Preferably, the resilient members 15 and openings 16 and 17 are formedin each retaining wall such that each holding mechanism 20 is a portionof a retaining wall. For example, the resilient members 15 and openings16 and 17 may be integrally molded in the retaining walls.

Each resilient member 15 is configured to move into opening 16 toreceive a stub or projection from an object in opening 17 and issufficiently resilient to move back toward opening 17 to engage theprojection or stub inserted into opening 17 to hold the projection orstub in the opening 17. For instance, a plug insert 24 that hasprojections 25 extending from two sides Of the plug insert 24 may beinserted into a receptacle between retaining walls 12 and 13, as shownin FIG. 4. The projections 25 of the plug insert are each held inopenings 16 of a holding mechanism 20 in retaining wall 12 and a holdingmechanism 20 in retaining wall 13 As another example, a wheel insert 31that has stubs 32 may be inserted into a receptacle defined by retainingwalls as shown in FIG. 7. The stubs 32 of the wheel insert 31 arereleasably retained by retaining members 15 after the stubs 32 areinserted into openings 17 of the holding mechanisms. The wheel inserts31 or plug inserts 24 are releasably held by the holding mechanisms 20of the retaining walls such that a user may pull the wheel or pluginserts out of the carrying case to release the inserts from the holdingmechanisms 20.

It should be appreciated that the retaining walls 12, 13 and 14 can eachhave a first portion that defines a side of the first opening 16opposite the resilient member 15 and a second portion that defines aside of the second opening 17 opposite the resilient member 15. Theseportions of the retaining walls may define an edge of an opening. Theresilient member 15 may be more flexible than first portion of theretaining wall, the second portion of the retaining wall or bothportions of the retaining wall. The flexibility of the resilient membermay be due to the resilient member having less mass than the first orsecond portion of the retaining wall. The resilient member may also havea different composition than the first or second portions of thesidewall that provide the greater flexibility.

A tool holding mechanism 18 is attached to the interior surface of thesecond portion 4. The tool holding mechanism 18 includes walls that aresized and configured to define openings for retaining a tool. A magnet19 or magnetic member is positioned within one of the openings and maybe encapsulated by one or more of the walls or at least partiallycovered by at least one portion of the tool holding mechanism 18.

As may be appreciated from FIGS. 4-7, a tool 22 may be releasably heldby the tool holding mechanism 18. The tool 22 includes at least onemagnetic portion or magnet that is attracted to the magnet 19 ormagnetic member of the tool holding mechanism 18. The magneticattraction between the tool 22 and the magnet 19 or magnetic memberholds at least a portion of the tool. The walls of the tool holdingmechanism 18 may also be configured to help retain at least a portion ofthe tool 22. Preferably, the tool holding mechanism 18 is configured tohold tools 22 that are sold tinder the Heelys trade name as tools forhelping to remove inserts to shoes sold under the Heelys trade name.

Preferably, the carrying case 1 is sized and configured to hold at leastone tool and two or more wheel inserts or plug inserts. However,embodiments of our carrying case may also be sized and configured forholding alternative numbers of tools or inserts. For instance,embodiments of our carrying case can be sized and configured to holdonly one wheel insert or more than 2 wheel inserts.

A second present preferred embodiment of our carrying case is shown inFIGS. 8-10 The carrying case 51 includes a clip attached to the body ofthe carrying case and a fastening mechanism 59 that is configured toreleasably attach one portion of the carrying case to the other portionsuch that the carrying case is moveable from a closed position to anopen positions. As may be seen in FIG. 10, the fastening mechanism 59includes a projection 83 that is sized and configured to releasablyclasp within opening 83 formed in a portion of the body.

The clip 53 may be attached to the carrying case 51 by having a portionof the clip inserted through a slot 55 formed in the body of thecarrying case. A hex nut, wing nut 57, or other fastener may be attachedto a portion of the clip 53 extending through the slot 55 to fasten theclip 53 to the carrying case. It should be appreciated that the use of awing nut 57 or other nuts or fastening devices can permit a user toadjust the position of the clip 53 along the slot 55.

The carrying case includes a cavity defined by two potions of the bodyof the carrying case that are moveably attached to each other. Oneportion of the body includes a plurality of sidewalls 62, 63 and 64. Thesidewalls define locations for storing objects, such as wheel inserts orplug inserts. Each sidewall has at least one holding mechanism 70. Eachholding mechanism 70 includes a resilient member 71 positioned betweentwo openings 72 and 73. The holding mechanisms 70 operate similarly tothe holding mechanisms 20 of the first present preferred embodiment ofour carrying case 1. The other portion of the body has a tool holdingmechanism 58 that includes the same features and operates the same asthe tool holding mechanism 18 of the first present preferred embodimentof our carrying case 1.

Preferably, embodiments of our carrying case are composed of anelastomeric material such as polypropylene or other plastics and areintegrally molded as a one piece structure. Embodiments of our carryingcase may also have an exterior surface that is designed to have aparticular aesthetic affect. For instance, the exterior surface mayinclude different colors or emblems such as lightening bolts or stars,molded into the exterior surfacer. The emblems may be coloreddifferently than other portions of the exterior surface.

It should be appreciated that variations of the present preferredembodiments discussed above may be made. For instance, embodiments ofour carrying case may be configured to hold numerous different objectsor have different shapes or sizes from the carrying cases shown in FIGS.1-10 and discussed above.

While certain present preferred embodiments of our carrying case havebeen discussed and illustrated, and certain present preferred methods ofmaking and using the same have also been discussed and illustrated, itis to be distinctly understood that the invention is not limited theretobut may be otherwise variously embodied and practiced within the scopeof the following claims.

1. A carrying case comprising: a body having a first portion moveablyattached to a second portion such that the first and second portions aremoveable from a closed position to an open position, the first portionhaving an exterior surface and an interior surface, the interior surfaceof the first portion defining a cavity, the second portion having anexterior surface and an interior surface, the interior surface of thesecond portion defining a cavity, first portion and the second portionbeing configured such that at least one object is positionable within atleast one of the cavity of the first portion and the cavity of thesecond portion when the body is positioned in the open position; thefirst portion of the body having a plurality of sidewalls that extendfrom the interior surface of the first portion, the plurality ofsidewalls defining at least one receptacle sized and configured toreceive an object with at least one projection; and wherein each of thesidewalls comprise at least one holding mechanism that is comprised of aretaining member attached to the sidewall between a first opening formedin the sidewall and a second opening formed in the sidewall, theretaining member being resilient.
 2. The carrying case of claim 1wherein the retaining member is configured to move to receive the atleast one projection of the object inserted into one of the first andsecond openings and move against the inserted at least one projection tohold the at least one projection after the at least one projection isinserted into one of the first and second openings.
 3. The carrying caseof claim 1 wherein the at least one object is comprised of at least onewheel insert or at least one plug-insert.
 4. The carrying case of claim1 wherein the second portion is comprised of a tool holding mechanismattached to the interior surface of the second portion.
 5. The carryingcase of claim 4 wherein the tool holding mechanism is comprised of amagnet attached to at least one wall that extends from the interiorsurface of the second portion.
 6. The carrying case of claim 5 whereinthe magnet is encased by the at least one wall.
 7. The carrying case ofclaim 1 wherein the carrying case is further comprised of a clipattached to one of the first portion of the body and second portion ofthe body.
 8. The carrying case of claim 7 wherein first portion also hasa slot that is sized and configured to moveably receive an attachmentdevice of the clip.
 9. The carrying case of claim 8 wherein theattachment device of the clip is comprised of a projection extendingfrom the clip and a tightening mechanism configured to rotate about theprojection to releasably attach the clip to the first portion.
 10. Thecarrying case of claim 9 wherein the tightening mechanism is removablyattached to the projection of the clip.
 11. The carrying case of claim 1further comprising a protrusion extending from the exterior surface ofthe first portion or the second portion, the protrusion sized andconfigured to define an opening between the protrusion and the body thatis sized and configured to receive a fastening device.
 12. The carryingcase of claim 11 wherein the protrusion defines a hook or loop and thefastening device is a clip.
 13. The carrying case of claim 1 wherein theplurality of sidewalls of the first portion define two receptacles. 14.The carrying case of claim 1 further comprising at least one hingeattached to the first portion and the second portion.
 15. The carryingcase of claim 1 wherein the body is composed of an elastomeric material.16. The carrying case of claim 15 wherein the elastomeric material isplastic.
 17. The carrying case of claim 1 wherein the retaining memberis formed in the sidewall adjacent the first opening and second opening.18. The carrying case of claim 1 wherein the sidewall has a firstportion that defines a side of the first opening opposite the resilientmember and the sidewall has a second portion that defines a side of thesecond opening opposite the resilient member, the resilient member beingmore flexible than at least one of the first portion of the sidewall andthe second portion of the sidewall.
 19. A carrying case for footwearinserts comprising: a body having a first portion moveably attached to asecond portion such that the first and second portions are moveable froma closed position to an open position, the first portion having anexterior surface and an interior surface, the interior surface of thefirst portion defining a cavity, the second portion having an exteriorsurface and an interior surface, the interior surface of the secondportion defining a cavity, first portion and the second portion beingconfigured such that at least one footwear insert is positionable withinat least one of the cavity of the first portion and the cavity of thesecond portion when the body is positioned in the open position; thesecond portion of the body comprising a holding mechanism having atleast one portion at least partially encapsulating a magnet sized andconfigured to releasably retain an object in the cavity of the secondportion.
 20. The carrying case of claim 19 wherein the first portion ofthe body has a plurality of walls that extend from the interior surfaceof the first portion, the plurality of walls defining at least onereceptacle sized and configured to receive the at least one footwearinsert with at least one projection, and wherein each of the walls ofthe first portion comprise at least one holding mechanism that iscomprised of a resilient retaining member attached to the wall between afirst opening formed in the wall and a second opening formed in thewall.